The invention relates to a connecting support for holding motor electronics, as can be used, in particular, on wiper motors in vehicles.
An established way of using electric motors as drives of wiper systems is embedding an electric motor in a complex assembly, called motor assembly in the text which follows, which, in addition to the actual motor, comprises gear mechanism components, housing parts, fixing means, electrical connection means and motor electronics. In this case, the electrical connection means are frequently arranged in the immediate vicinity of the motor parts with which contact is to be made, in order to be able to realize short conduction paths.
In the interests of simplified connection, the connection plugs used are frequently designed such that the motor assembly is fully ready for operation when said connection plugs are connected. Consequently, components with which contact is to be made and which are arranged at a distance from a corresponding plugging slot or the connection plug have to be connected via separate feed lines which lead from the respective installation site of the components with which contact is to be made to the plugging slot or the connection plug, in order to ensure the ability to make a connection in the manner discussed above in one connection step. Components of this type with which contact is to be made and which have an installation position which differs from the connection plug are, for example, control contacts with which the position of the gear mechanism elements within the motor assembly is detected, in order to be able to correctly control the turning position of a wiper system.
To this end, the control contacts are integrated in a contact holder such that their ends come into electrically conductive contact with moving parts of the gear mechanism, from which parts the precise position of the output shaft on which the wiper blade is located can be derived, or can communicate with them in some other way. In this case, the position of the control contacts is defined by correspondingly fixing the contact holder in an opening in the gear mechanism housing.
Particularly in the case of an arrangement of the connection plug or plugging slot at the end of the motor housing, a relatively large surface area is provided between the control contacts and the connection plug on the motor housing, it being possible on the one hand for said surface area to be used for fixing further construction elements, but on the other hand said surface area having to be bridged by means of corresponding electrical conduction means in order to make contact with the control contacts. This bridging is performed, according to the prior art, by extrusion-coated metal strips which are integrated in the gear mechanism cover or by cables which run freely across the outside of the motor assembly.
The variant with metal strips running in the gear mechanism cover complicates production of the gear mechanism cover and, when adaptations are needed or there are defects in the contact-connection to the control contacts, always requires the replacement of the entire gear mechanism cover. The variant with cables which run freely across the outside of the motor assembly is associated, in particular, with the risk of damage to the cables.
In addition to these contact-making measures, a separate support is often fitted with corresponding motor electronics in the above-mentioned housing region, said motor electronics being partially electrically connected to brush holders/connection plugs and/or control contacts. In this case, mounting the support with the motor electronics therefore constitutes an additional working step which has to be coordinated with the installation of the connecting means between the control contacts on the connection plug.